Google Inc. won a landmark court case on Wednesday when the High Court of Australia held that there was no fraudulent intent with sponsored links a...

Google Inc. won a landmark court case on Wednesday when the High Court of Australia held that there was no fraudulent intent with sponsored links and he was not responsible for the messages conveyed by the paid advertisers.

The decision allows Internet providers and search engines claim that they are not publishers, but simply information provided by third parties. Although the ruling only applies in Australia, the decision will be closely monitored over the world and can be cited as a precedent in the case of similar cases occur in the rapidly developing area of ​​law. “Others will definitely look into this decision. Google is a global company. This is something of a first, and it adds a bit of clarity for the industry,” the head of the Australian Association of the Internet industry, Peter Lee told Reuters. The conclusion ends a six-year battle between Google and legal watchdog for consumers in Australia, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has accused Google of the exercise of misleading conduct on the paid listings. ACCC bases his argument on the results of the survey in 2006 and 2007, where a search for Honda Australia show a paid advertisement for a competitor Honda Carsales. The ACCC said the ads were misleading because they suggested was due to Carsales Honda Motor Co. Ltd.

Google argued that it is not responsible for the advertising, that don “was the lead for the advertiser.

In a unanimous conclusion, five judges of the High Court of Australia ruled in favor of Google, reversing a decision of the Federal Court. The lower court had ordered Google to perform a compliance program to ensure that the paid listings on its search engine, not misleading. five judges of the High Court declared that Google is not the PPC made and the company was not liable for messages in the links. “User ordinary and reasonable search engine Google would have understood that the ideas conveyed by the sponsored links are those of advertisers, and would not have concluded that Google has adopted or endorsed performance,” said the court said. Google released a short statement that he welcomed the decision, while the ACCC said it would reconsider the decision to see if it had wider ramifications for the rights of consumers Australia. “The ACCC has adopted these procedures to the law on advertising practices in the Internet age to clarify,” ACCC chairman Rod Sims said in a statement.

legal victory comes after Google and language software maker Rosetta Stone Inc. last year settled a trademark infringement lawsuit in the United States on the advertising practices of Google.

Rosetta had suggested people looking for their products on Google focused on competitors and counterfeiters software. Google has changed the way the sponsored links are displayed in Australia, now clearly labeled as advertising at the top of search results. A Google search for Honda Australia posted on Wednesday, paid ads for Honda Australia website.